Harry Potter is in the Gryffindor house. The Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry was founded by four powerful wizards: Godric Gryffindor, Salazar Slytherin, Rowena Ravenclaw, and Helga Hufflepuff. They chose to split the students into four houses, each bearing their surnames and featuring young wizards and witches who displayed abilities and personalities they wanted to nurture. To decide which children should go into which house, Godric Gryffindor used his magical hat, henceforth known as the Sorting Hat, and so it has been ever since with a yearly Sorting Ceremony that places each new pupil into their own new home. The four houses have different entry requirements, and nobody summed them up better than the old Sorting Hat itself in its welcoming song. Gryffindor is known for bravery and courage, and its house animal is the lion, and its house colors are scarlet and gold. Some of the most famous Gryffindors include Harry Potter and Albus Dumbledore, the most recent headmaster of Hogwarts.